Flow forming is a process used to produce a formed metal part. Flow forming is the use of metal forming lathes to extrude a blank or a preform prepared from a desired material into the formed metal part. Flow forming provides the features traditionally provided by a stamping process, while also providing the additional benefits of improved dimensional capabilities, work hardening up to three-times the desired material properties, and the ability to use the part after formation with limited or no additional machining required.
Post-processing associated with flow forming including, for example, forming windows in a flow formed part, may result in undesirable burrs and other surface flaws formed on the part. The burrs and other surface flaws must be removed, requiring additional machining steps. Therefore, the cost of production and the overall efficiency of the flow forming process are adversely affected.
It would be desirable to produce a flow formed metal part with a minimized number of burrs and/or other surface flaws, minimize machining and production costs of the metal part, and maximize an efficiency of the flow forming process. In particular, it would be desirable to produce a flow formed drum having a reinforcing member and a substantially burr free profile.